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WYNDHAM HOTELS & RESORTS and WaterWalk recently launched a new upscale brand, "WaterWalk Extended Stay by Wyndham." This deal will introduce up to 11 hotels with more than 1,500 rooms, initially in markets such as Tucson, Jacksonville, and Wichita. Pictured is the lobby of the WaterWalk by Wyndham - Phoenix. The new brand is Wyndham's 25th addition to its portfolio and will join the company's existing economy and mid-scale extended-stay brands, Wyndham said in a statement. "In the last year, guest demand for the extended stay segment reached record highs, which has been underscored by demand from owners and developers looking for new opportunities to partner with Wyndham," said Chip Ohlsson, Wyndham's chief development officer. "Our vision is to offer the industry's most robust portfolio of extended stay brands and the addition of WaterWalk marks an important step in that direction-helping ensure we have an offering in every segment, for every owner and for every guest." WaterWalk, founded by the late Jack DeBoer, currently runs 11 hotels in the U.S., the statement added. Newer hotels adopt the brand's Gen 2.0 prototype, focusing on efficient design and lower operating costs to increase profitability.

THE FIRST PROPERTY representing Wyndham Hotels & Resorts' ECHO Suites Extended Stay by Wyndham brand opened recently in Spartanburg, South Carolina. Among the attendees at the grand opening, along with executives from Wyndham and more, were the first two Indo American developers who are building upcoming ECHO hotels. Wyndham also brought on Mandeep Singh as vice president for extended stay operations, overseeing ECHO Suites and the new Waterwalk Extended Stay by Wyndham brands. Singh has a more than 20-year background in extended-stay hotels, corporate housing, serviced apartments and multi-family properties. The 124-room ECHO Spartanburg is owned by Cox Universal Group, led by Philip Cox as co-CEO and co-founder and is managed by Sandpiper Hospitality. The prototype for the all new-construction brand is designed to fit on less than two acres at 50,000 square-feet, 79 percent of which is designed for generating revenue.